Here are two documents pertaining to inclusive language: the first was generated by a team of Bellarmine parishioners in 1988 and the second was written by the US Catholic Bishops just a few years later. These two documents are essentially in sync with each other. The members of our Worship Core had the opportunity to review these documents on May 17, 2016 and found that they are both still helpful for guiding the way we sing and speak at liturgy. Nevertheless, as the documents themselves indicate, religious language is not a simple matter and requires care, prayer and on-going challenge vigilance. The reason for this is simple: all of our prayer, whether personal or communal, attempts to point to “the One in whom we live, move and have our being.” Although we commonly express ourselves with words, we must do so knowing that no words adequately capture the totality of the mystery that is God. All that we can do is to be careful not to distort the divine reality towards which we are trying to refer.
